Your Arrogance

I was very annoyed with the fact you had the arrogance to tell one of my patients I wasn’t a qualified cosmetic dentist and their Lumineers need to be redone. You told her that the bonding isn’t correct and it will ruin her teeth. Who are you to say if I’m a qualified cosmetic dentist or not? It isn’t even a recognized specialty.

Name Withheld

Dear Anonymous Dentist,

A porcelain veneers case done by Dr. David Newkirk.

I won’t reveal your name, though you should have had the courage to do so yourself. Yes, I did tell your patient that cosmetic dentistry isn’t a recognized specialty. Because of that, it is up to the dentist how much training in aesthetics they invest in.

As far as her Lumineers case, they absolutely need to be re-done. They are not properly bonded. She came to me because they were bulky and looked like horse teeth. She was also worried because she thought they were starting to stain already. However, they weren’t actually picking up stains. What she was noticing was discoloration from food and other bacteria getting between her Lumineers and her teeth. This absolutely will destroy her teeth and does need to be redone.

Furthermore, I told her unless she can verify that you have the requisite training to do a great job, she should just get a refund and have a more qualified cosmetic dentist do them. The fact that you’re offended by that tells me you don’t have much training.

One thing I DID suggest to her is to check the mynewsmile.com website to see who they recommend in her area. The reason I suggested that website is because the AACD accredited dentist who runs the site screens each dentist who wants to be listed. They have to show they have the technical training and artistry to create beautiful smiles.

It is great that you are interested in the aesthetic side to the dental field. However, if the case I saw was any evidence, it wouldn’t hurt to invest some more time in developing your art. Every dentist has their first few cosmetic cases and most of them have to be done more than once to get them right. You want to be the best dentist you can.

May I also suggest you not focus on Lumineers. Learn other brands of porcelain veneers as well that allow you to choose your own lab instead of insisting you use theirs.

You want to create something your patient is proud of. I’m happy to point you to some excellent places to invest your time in studying. Every great cosmetic dentist had to do that at some point.

This blog is brought to you by Naperville Cosmetic Dentist Dr. David Newkirk.